The Casio Moflin is, according to its , a "smart companion powered by AI, with emotions like a living creature."
You can't fool me, Casio. What you've made here is an AI-powered , and now those of us in the US and the UK can pick one up for /. The once-Japan-only device is said to be many things, including a calming presence, a quiet reassurance, and something that "responds, understands, and grows with you."
My favourite part, however, comes deeper in the specs sheet, listed under "operating temp". Moflins apparently need to be kept between 5 °C to 35 °C (41 °F to 95 °F), within an environment with a humidity of no more than 80%.
Wait a minute—so you can't get it wet? Turns out I was wrong, it's not a Tribble after all. It's a , of fame. Don't feed it after midnight, folks. I've seen those movies, and it usually doesn't end well.
All joking aside, I can see how a cuddly, emotionally-needy artificial pet might provide some genuine comfort to those who suffer from loneliness, or perhaps those who have experienced some sort of trauma. I'm not so cold-hearted as my colleague Jacob Fox, who wondered aloud what might happen to one if it was introduced to a fast-moving baseball bat. Yes Jacob, I've outed you to the world. For shame.
On the other hand, I can't help but feel that this sort of therapy-based AI implementation might have greater [[link]] emotional pitfalls (along with some potential privacy concerns), but that's well outside of my area of expertise. It's cute, it's cuddly, it listens and responds to your every whim, and now you can buy one outside of Japan. Oh, and it comes with its own charging bed—which you'll need to use quite regularly, as it runs out of juice after five hours of operation.
Just don't put it in the bath, expose it to extreme temperatures, or attempt to feed it chicken drumsticks from the fridge, no matter how much it demands. You [[link]] have been warned.

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